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WateringTimes

Sweetwater Authority

Chula Vista Watering Schedule

No set daysRules verified August 28, 2026

Any day is allowed. These rules apply year round

  • No watering lawns within 48 hours of rain, and no watering in a manner that causes runoff.
  • Repair major leaks immediately and minor leaks within 24 hours of discovery.
  • No hosing off sidewalks, driveways or other hardscapes except as necessary for immediate safety or sanitary hazards.
  • Car washing needs a hose with an automatic shut-off nozzle, and fountains must be on a recirculating system.
  • No potable water on turf in public street medians, and no watering non-functional lawns in commercial, industrial and institutional areas, including HOA common areas.
  • Encouraged but not required: sprinklers no more than 3 days per week between 6:00 pm and 9:00 am.

Sweetwater Authority assigns no watering days and no required watering hours: there is no odd or even address rule and no days-per-week cap in force. Its own page does encourage sprinklers no more than 3 days per week between 6:00 pm and 9:00 am, but that wording sits under Water Use Reduction Measures with the verb "are encouraged", so it is advice and carries no fine. What is enforceable now is a set of water waste prohibitions that the Authority says are currently in effect for all customers, including no runoff, no watering lawns within 48 hours of rain, and no hosing off hardscapes. Sweetwater serves only the western and central portions of Chula Vista, so eastern Chula Vista addresses are served by Otay Water District instead and are not covered by these rules. The Authority has been at Level 1 Drought Watch, the voluntary baseline level of its Drought Response Plan, since 2016.

How many minutes on each watering day

Sweetwater Authority assigns no watering days, so nobody can tell you how many days to split the week across. Set the days you actually water and this works out the minutes from Chula Vista's climate for the month you pick.

Climate data

Chula Vista · 48.7 in/yr

About 29 minutes per watering day, 2 days a week.

How that was worked out

Week's climate demand: 6 in for July × 7 ÷ 31 days = 1.355 in

Plants need: 1.355 × 0.8 = 1.084 in this week

Run time: 1.084 ÷ (1.6 in/hr × 0.7) × 60 = 58 min per week

Split: 58 ÷ 2 watering days = 29 min each time

If water runs off the edges before the cycle ends, split each day into shorter back-to-back cycles with a soak break between them. The total minutes stay the same.

Rain is not subtracted here. Skip watering during and after rain, and follow your supplier's rain rule. Point-source drip emitters and Bubblers are not in the list above: no manufacturer publishes an inches-per-hour rate for them, so those zones are watered by volume rather than by a run time against a rate.

Want the full method, the nozzle rate tables and their sources? Open the run time calculator.

Current status

Level 1 - Drought Watch (the baseline level of the Drought Response Plan, in effect since 2016 per the Authority's own Drought Updates page). Level 1 is defined as voluntary in Table 1 of the 2025 Water Shortage Contingency Plan, with customers requested to reduce use by up to 10 percent from the base.

The schedule

Year round

No seasonal or calendar date ranges are printed anywhere in Sweetwater Authority's rules. The same year round rules apply from January 1 through December 31.

Days: No mandatory days limit at the current Level 1 - Drought Watch condition. The Authority's own wording on its Water Waste Prohibitions page is advisory: 'Customers are encouraged to restrict landscape irrigation with sprinklers to no more than 3 days per week between the hours of 6:00 pm and 9:00 am. A 30-day grace period is extended to customers establishing new lawns.' The Drought Response Plan Level 1 measure 7 matches: customers 'are encouraged to' 'irrigate no more than three (3) days per week.' There is no odd or even address rule and no assigned weekdays. Mandatory day limits exist only at higher levels that are NOT in effect: no more than two (2) days per week at Level 2 and Level 3, and no more than 1 day per week at Level 4. The Level 2 and Level 3 wording adds 'or as otherwise determined by the Governing Board in its reasonable discretion, which may include limitations to specific days of the week', so specific weekdays could be assigned only after a Board declaration that has not happened.

Hours: Encouraged only, not required, at the current Level 1 condition. Drought Response Plan Section 7(B), Level 1 measure 7, reads 'Customers are encouraged to ... limit sprinkler operation to the hours of 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. the following morning, except for the first thirty (30) days necessary to establish a new lawn; and to irrigate no more than three (3) days per week.' The public page prints this as 6:00 pm to 9:00 am. A mandatory hours window first appears at Level 2 - Drought Alert, not at Level 4: Level 2 measure 7 reads 'Customers are to restrict outdoor landscape sprinkler operation to the hours of 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. the following morning; and to irrigate no more than two (2) days per week, or as otherwise determined by the Governing Board in its reasonable discretion, which may include limitations to specific days of the week.' That is one sentence carrying both the hours half and the two day half under the same verb phrase. Level 4 - Drought Critical measure 4 restates the same window more strongly: 'Customers shall only operate landscape sprinklers between the hours of 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. the following morning.' Neither Level 2 nor Level 4 is in effect. One documentation gap worth knowing: Table 3 of the 2025 Water Shortage Contingency Plan shows an hours row only at Level 4 and none at Level 2, but the Drought Response Plan adopted June 9, 2021 by Resolution 21-13 is the operative enforcement instrument and places the window at Level 2.

Run-time limits: No per station minute limit applies at the current Level 1 condition. At Level 2 the plan states customers 'are encouraged to limit lawn watering and landscape irrigation using sprinklers to no more than ten (10) minutes per watering station per day', followed by 'This recommendation does not apply to landscape irrigation systems using water efficient devices, including but not limited to weather-based controllers, drip/micro-irrigation systems and stream rotor sprinklers.' At Level 3 the same ten minute cap is written as 'Customers are to limit' and carries the same carve out: 'This does not apply to landscape irrigation systems using water efficient devices, including but not limited to weather-based controllers, drip/micro-irrigation systems and stream rotor sprinklers.' At Level 4 the cap is required and there is NO water efficient device carve out: measure 6 reads in full 'Customers are to limit irrigation using sprinklers to no more than 10 minutes per watering station per day', and the Level 4 preamble states that where its measures conflict with lower levels 'the following language will replace the conflicting language in the lower level requirements.' Table 3 of the 2025 Water Shortage Contingency Plan likewise carries no carve out on its Level 4 ten minute row. The water efficient device carve out therefore applies at Level 2 and Level 3 only. None of these levels is in effect.

Exceptions and standing rules

  • New lawns: the sprinkler hours guidance does not apply 'for the first thirty (30) days necessary to establish a new lawn.' The public page prints this as a 30 day grace period for customers establishing new lawns.
  • Hardscape washing: Drought Response Plan Section 7(A)(1) permits hosing off sidewalks, driveways or other hardscapes 'where necessary to address an immediate health and safety need or to comply with a term or condition in a permit issued by a State or federal agency.' The public Water Waste Prohibitions page prints a shorter version of the same carve out, 'except as necessary for immediate safety or sanitary hazards.'
  • Drip and hand watering: customers 'are encouraged to use drip methods or hand irrigation whenever possible and prudent to water landscaped areas, including trees and shrubs that are not irrigated by a landscape irrigation system.' These methods are encouraged rather than restricted.
  • Nozzle type carve out for the ten minute per station rule at Level 2 and Level 3 only: the cap 'does not apply to landscape irrigation systems using water efficient devices, including but not limited to weather-based controllers, drip/micro-irrigation systems and stream rotor sprinklers.' Level 4 measure 6 writes the same ten minute cap with no carve out at all, and the Level 4 preamble replaces conflicting lower level language, so a Level 4 declaration would remove this carve out.
  • Alternate water sources: 'The provisions of this Drought Response Plan do not apply to use of water from private wells or other approved alternate water sources including, but not limited to grey water and rain water catchment systems.'
  • Pools, ornamental lakes and ponds: at Level 2, customers 'are encouraged to stop filling or re-filling pools, ornamental lakes and/or ponds, except to the extent needed to sustain aquatic life.' At Level 3 the same measure adds a qualifier: 'except to the extent needed to sustain aquatic life, provided that such animals are of significant value and have been actively managed within the water feature prior to declaration of a drought response level under this ordinance.'
  • Vehicle washing: allowed with a hose equipped with an automatic shut-off nozzle. At Level 4 customers 'shall stop hand-washing vehicles' and are encouraged to stop washing vehicles 'except at commercial carwashes that re-circulate (reclaim) water onsite, or by high pressure/low volume wash systems.'
  • Level 5 and Level 6 carve outs from the total irrigation stop: crops and landscape products of commercial growers and nurseries; existing landscaping necessary for fire protection as specified by the fire marshal of the local fire protection agency; existing landscaping for erosion control; plant materials identified as rare or essential to the well-being of rare animals; landscaping within active public parks and playing fields, day care centers, school grounds, cemeteries and golf course greens, provided such irrigation 'does not exceed two (2) days per week'; watering of livestock; public works projects and actively irrigated environmental mitigation projects.
  • Penalty exemptions at Levels 2 through 4 (not day rules): residential water use at or below 28 HCF in the bi-monthly billing periods for bills received in July, August, September and October and 22 HCF for all other months during Level 2; at or below 17 HCF bi-monthly during Level 3; at or below 11 HCF bi-monthly during Level 4; accounts related to a medical nature; and commercial establishments offering services that allow individuals alternative means for completing water dependent tasks.
  • Appeals: a Target Water Allocation appeal may be filed at any time, and a penalty appeal within two (2) weeks of receipt of the bi-monthly or monthly bill, in writing on the appeal form filed with the General Manager or designee, with a further written appeal to the Governing Board within seven (7) days of receipt of the written decision.
  • NOT PRINTED: Sweetwater Authority publishes no exception for hot days, heat waves, edible or vegetable gardens, potted plants, or smart controller enrollment. Do not show any such exception on the page.

Fines and enforcement

  1. First violation of any prohibition: written warning
  2. Second violation of any prohibition within one (1) year: $50
  3. Third violation of any prohibition within one (1) year: $100
  4. Fourth violation of any prohibition within one (1) year: $200
  5. Each violation thereafter of any prohibition within one (1) year: $500
  6. Any violation occurring more than one (1) year from the previous one is treated as a first violation
  7. Each day that a violation of a prohibited water conservation measure occurs is a separate offense
  8. Separate ladder for exceeding a Target Water Allocation, which applies only at Level 2 and above: first and second allocation overage violation written warning; third within one year $100; fourth within one year $200; each thereafter within one year $500. Customers are notified of an overage and given one (1) full billing cycle to bring usage below the allocation.
  9. If the Governing Board activates mandatory water use reductions by resolution, a willful violation 'may be prosecuted as a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than thirty (30) days or by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000 -U.S.A. currency), or by both, as provided in California Water Code Section 377'
  10. Willful violations of mandatory conservation measures may also be enforced by discontinuing service to the property at which the violation occurs, as provided by California Water Code Section 356 et seq.
  11. Rates and Rules effective 01/01/2026, Section 15.5, separately allows the Governing Board acting through its General Manager 'to apply such penalties as may be provided by law, or to take any other action as deemed appropriate, including but not limited to, the discontinuance of potable water service.'
  12. Scope note: at the current Level 1 condition, the fine ladder reaches the state water waste prohibitions. Section 9 of the Drought Response Plan opens 'Any customer who violates a state water waste prohibition at any time, and/or uses, causes to be used, or permits the use of water in violation of this Drought Response Plan during a Level 2 ... condition ... is guilty of an offense punishable as provided.' The advisory three days per week and 6:00 pm to 9:00 am guidance carries no fine.

Report water waste: Online "Report Water Waste" form at https://www.sweetwater.org/FormCenter/For-Customers-7/Report-Water-Waste-60, or by phone at (619) 420-1413. The Water Waste Prohibitions page links this form through the older host ca-sweetwaterauthority.civicplus.com; publish the sweetwater.org address, which is the canonical one and returned HTTP 200 on check. The separate Water Efficiency Helpline is (619) 409-6779.

Is this your water supplier?

Sweetwater Authority covers only the western and central portions of Chula Vista, so eastern Chula Vista addresses and part of Bonita are served by Otay Water District instead. Sweetwater's own 2025 Urban Water Management Plan (Public Draft), Section 4.3.5, names Otay Water District as bordering "on the east and south", the City of San Diego as bordering "on the north and south", and California American Water (Cal-Am) as bordering "on the south". The San Diego County Water Authority is the regional wholesaler rather than a retail supplier and sets no household watering days.

Questions people ask

What days can I water in Chula Vista?
Any day. Sweetwater Authority assigns no watering days, no odd or even address rule and no days-per-week cap at its current Level 1 Drought Watch condition. Mandatory day limits exist only at higher levels that have not been declared: no more than two (2) days per week at Level 2 and Level 3, and no more than 1 day per week at Level 4.
What hours can I run sprinklers?
There is no required time-of-day window right now. The Drought Response Plan asks Level 1 customers to limit sprinkler operation to the hours of 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. the following morning, but that measure reads "are encouraged to", so it is guidance rather than a rule. A mandatory window first appears at Level 2 Drought Alert, which is not in effect.
Is the 3 days a week limit an actual rule?
No, it is a recommendation. Sweetwater's Water Waste Prohibitions page prints it under Water Use Reduction Measures as "Customers are encouraged to restrict landscape irrigation with sprinklers to no more than 3 days per week between the hours of 6:00 pm and 9:00 am." The 2025 Water Shortage Contingency Plan marks Level 1 as voluntary and its enforcement table lists no Level 1 row for days or hours at all.
What is actually banned right now?
The Water Waste Prohibitions page states these are currently in effect for all customers. Banned: watering lawns in a manner that causes runoff, watering lawns within 48 hours of rain, using potable water to irrigate turf on public street medians, hosing off sidewalks, driveways or other hardscapes except as necessary for immediate safety or sanitary hazards, running fountains or decorative water features that are not connected to a recirculating system, and washing automobiles with hoses not equipped with an automatic shut-off nozzle. Major leaks must be repaired immediately and minor leaks within 24 hours of discovery. Non-functional lawns in commercial, industrial and institutional areas cannot be watered either, and that expressly includes common areas of homeowners' associations (HOAs).
What is exempt from the rules?
New lawns get a 30-day grace period from the sprinkler hours guidance, covering "the first thirty (30) days necessary to establish a new lawn." Hosing hardscapes is permitted where necessary to address an immediate health and safety need or to comply with a term or condition in a permit issued by a State or federal agency. The Drought Response Plan also does not apply to water from private wells or other approved alternate water sources, including grey water and rain water catchment systems. Sweetwater publishes no exception for hot days, heat waves, edible or vegetable gardens, potted plants or smart controllers.
What is the fine for breaking the watering rules?
A first violation of any prohibition brings a written warning. A second violation within one (1) year is $50, a third within one year is $100, a fourth is $200, and each violation thereafter within one year is $500. Any violation occurring more than one year from the previous one is treated as a first violation, and each day that a violation occurs counts as a separate offense. The encouraged 3 days per week and 6:00 pm to 9:00 am guidance carries no fine.
Can I water after it rains?
No. Watering lawns within 48 hours of rain is one of the water waste prohibitions the Authority lists as currently in effect for all customers. It sits in the prohibitions block rather than the encouraged measures, so unlike the 3 days per week suggestion it is enforceable and applies year round.
My address is in Chula Vista but my bill is not from Sweetwater Authority. Why?
Sweetwater Authority covers only the western and central portions of Chula Vista, along with National City, Bonita Valley and Lincoln Acres in unincorporated San Diego County. Eastern Chula Vista addresses and part of Bonita are served by Otay Water District instead, and Sweetwater's own 2025 Urban Water Management Plan names Otay as bordering it on the east and south, the City of San Diego on the north and south, and California American Water on the south. The San Diego County Water Authority is the regional wholesaler rather than a retail supplier and sets no household watering days. Check the supplier named on your water bill.
How do I report water waste in Chula Vista?
Use the online Report Water Waste form at https://www.sweetwater.org/FormCenter/For-Customers-7/Report-Water-Waste-60, or call Sweetwater Authority at (619) 420-1413. For questions about your own water use rather than a neighbor's, the separate Water Efficiency Helpline is (619) 409-6779.

Sources

WateringTimes is an informational gardening and landscape reference for California. Watering numbers are estimates computed from public state data. Nothing on this site is regulatory or professional advice of any kind. Check your water supplier’s current rules before relying on any schedule.